Braving Fate
by Allanna Stone
Summary: Elena Kenway is a spunky, soft spoken girl with a fierce love for historical reenactments and archery. When she meets Connor, the brother she never knew she had, she discovers hidden secrets and dangers about her family tree.
1. Chapter 1

**Braving Fate**

 **I don't own Assassin's Creed.**

 **SUMMARY:**

 **Elena Kenway is a spunky, soft spoken girl with a fierce love for historical reenactments and archery. When she meets Connor, the brother she never knew she had, she discovers hidden secrets and dangers about her family tree.**

I grinned as the intoxicating scent of faire consumed my senses. I rolled down the window more and stuck my head out, whooping as my boyfriend maneuvered his little red voltswagon bus with careful precision.

"Elena!" Ryan scolded me, pulling me back into my seat without taking his eyes off the road.

"Sorry," I apologized meekly. "It's just that I feel more at home at faire then I do on the modern streets."

"I understand," he smiled crookedly at me before quickly claiming a parking spot for his vehicle and unlocking the doors. He turned to me and pulled me in for a quick little kiss. "Can you get Marie? I'll grab the wagon and cart all our stuff to our tenting spot."

I jumped out and opened the side door, smiling at two year old Marie Prince, Ryan's niece.

I gently unbuckled her from her carseat and lifted the sleeping baby into my arms, humming softly as I rubbed her back.

"You're such a good little puppy," I murmured softly as Ryan lifted my little red wagon out and began to statistically pile on our separate suitcases, sleeping bags and pillows. After he had finished, he shut the door of his voltswagon bus and began to lead the way towards the campsite. I followed, carrying little Marie.

I grinned upon reaching our tent, set up around the back of the archer's main meeting tent. Ryan held the flap open for me to enter and I saw that someone had already pieced together our beds. Ryan had a cot, Marie would be sleeping in a little toddler's bed and I would be catching my beauty sleep in a hammock. Ryan manfully unpacked our suitcases and set our sleeping bags and pillows onto our respective beds before turning to face me with a smile on his face.

"You're so beautiful, Elena," he breathed, crossing the tent to draw me into his arms and kiss my forehead, being careful not to wake Marie.

I giggled, snuggling into his chest to inhale his scent of pine and spices. We stayed in that embrace until someone started bellowing loudly.

"Archers, take your mark!" roared Peter, our commander, waking little Marie. The little girl rubbed her eyes with her fists before making a questioning cooing sound.

"I need to run, but I will be back in twenty minutes, okay?" I told her as I took up my longbow and quiver of arrows. "Don't drive your uncle crazy."

I burst out of my tent, strapping my quiver onto my back as I ran over to where the battle would be taking place later that afternoon. I raced over to my spot, in the first row of archers, and found myself in between Samuel and Fred, both wearing wrinkled jeans and battle helmets.

"Going for historical accuracy, are we?" I quipped, smirking at the glare that Fred sent my way. I ignored his grumpy eyes that looked like he needed more sleep and instead concentrated on what Peter was saying.

"... is just a firing practice. Alex! Nock, draw, loose!" An arrow whizzed off towards one of many hay bales that was set up around the battlefield for target references, as how we archers were using blunt arrows for safety reasons.

I waited until Peter called my name and I nocked my arrow, drew the string to my ear, and released. I watched where my arrow was flying and winced as it went over the neighbor's fence and ended in their yard.

"Good grief, Elena, only you, only you," muttered Peter before continuing with the line.

I rolled my neck, sighing as a series of tight "crack-crack-crack"s sounded out throughout the still morning air. After everyone had fired off an arrow, Peter released us to go do whatever until the park opened for faire.

After I collected my arrows, I headed back to my tent to grab Ryan and Marie so that we could go walk around and talk to each other. Fifteen minutes later, Ryan was chuckling as I balanced myself on my hands on the handrails of a bridge that crossed over a little river. I shifted my weight slightly so that my hips were square with my hands and brought my legs up so that I slightly resembled a human W.

"I still don't know how it is that you are a human pretzel, Elena," Ryan was telling me as little Marie watched me from the safety of her uncle's arms.

I jumped, tucking myself into a roll as I hit the ground and popped back up onto my feet.

"It's just something my body can do," I explained as I took Marie from his arms and kissed her forehead.

"Miss Kenway!"

I looked up at hearing my name and frowned as Mr. Beanins, my caseworker, jogged over to us. Mr. Beanins was a slightly overweight man with thinning blonde hair and watery green eyes.

"What a surprise to see you here!" I exclaimed, setting little Marie down and watching as she toddled around the bridge.

"Yes, well I do hate to cut the pleasantries short," Mr. Beanins coughed to himself as he caught his breath.

"If I may have a work in private, Miss Kenway?" he hinted. I kissed Ryan on the cheek and watched as he gathered up his niece and went off in the direction of our tent.

"I was not aware that you had a little girl," Mr. Beanins commented. I was quick to correct him by saying that Marie wasn't the product of Ryan and my love, but she did enjoy being in the presence of her "Uncla Wian" and "Auntie Ellie". After he was finished being flustered at the dimple mistake, he got down to business.

"Now Elena, as you know, your godparents are deceased, as well as your parents," he began. "As a matter of fact, your only option would be to go into foster care until you reached legal age in three years."

"But?" I gently probed, biting my lips as I stuffed my hands under my armpits to warm them, suddenly noting the chilly morning air.

"But, it turned out that your father, unknowingly to him until his last few months, had a son from a previous relationship," the man surprised me with.

"I have a brother?" I asked in shocked wonder, dropping into a one handed hand stand. "I've always wanted a brother."

Mr. Beanins chuckled at my statement, which had came out nasally due to the fact that I was upside down.

"Elena, he's eager to meet you," he told me softly.

"Please," I whispered, popping myself back up onto my feet. "Is he here?"

I sensed someone coming up behind me. I turned and saw a young man at least five years older than I with deep tan skin, soft brown eyes and a strong build standing awkwardly.

"Elena, meet your brother."


	2. Chapter 2

**Braving Fate**

 **SUMMARY:**

 **Elena Kenway is a spunky, soft spoken girl with a fierce love for historical reenactments and archery. When she meets Connor, the brother she never knew she had, she discovers hidden secrets and dangers about her family tree.**

"Hi," I greeted him a bit shyly, holding out my hand for him to shake. "I'm Elena."

"Connor," he answered me in an American accent, accepting my hand and giving it a firm squeeze before letting go. "It is customary for the pirate to give people a rough time?"

I grimaced at the mention of the pirates, who I had a serious love/hate relationship with.

"Only those who aren't dressed in full garb," I explained, waving to my ensemble. I wore a pretty bodice in a lovely shade of purple, a loose fitting pink blouse, a dark brown skirt with a ragged hem with brown leggings and leather boots under that. A leather belt kept my hip quiver and money pouch close to me and I wore my pretty blonde curls in an elaborate braided style.

"Oh," was all that he said, glancing around him as someone shouted my name. I turned and frowned at Fred, who was struggling to tie the sides of his doublet close.

"Elena, do you mind? My sister is who-knows-where, getting into someone's hair," he explained, lifting his arms up so that I could tie him up.

"There, is that too tight?" I asked him as he swung his arms around.

"Perfect, thank you, m'lady," he told me, kissing my hand before jogging off.

"So the pirates enjoy harassing everyone, if there's a reason to do it, they do it," I told him as he watched Fred run off. "And don't worry about Fred- we're merely acquaintances, nothing more. Besides, you'll meet Ryan and Marie soon enough."

He opened his mouth, to ask who Ryan and Marie were I imagined, but Peter began to bellow yet again.

"Whose arrow is this?" he thundered, holding up an orange and yellow fletched arrow for all to see.

"Not mine- mine are blue fletched!" I hollered back with equal lung power before turning to face Connor yet again, chuckling at the look on his face. "I need strong lungs for singing and fighting and riding horses and trekking around faire."

I began to lead the way towards the gypsy encampment, which I knew would be abandoned due to the fact that the gypsies never arrived until after faire opened. I trotted over the bridge that led onto their territory and expertly swung myself up into a tree and leaned dwon to talk to the brother I never knew I had.

"What nationally are you?" I asked him out of curiosity. Now that I was closer to him, I noticed that his skin had a red tint.

"Half whatever Haytham was, half Mohawkian," he told me. Seeing the confused look on my face, he added in, "Native American."

"Daddy was mostly Welsh on his father's side with Scotts, Danish and some French and Austrian blood from his mother's side," I informed him, taking in how his face went stony when I addressed our father with such an endearing term.

"And your mother?" he asked.

"Don't know- she was adopted from France at age four," I told him, swinging from the branch to hang upside down over the grass. "But I tell people that she was French through and through."

"How old are you?" he asked me as I hung there.

"Fifteen," I answered him in a nasally voice. "You?"

"Twenty," he answered, hovering near me in case I should fall onto my head, which I wouldn't do. "How long have you been doing this faire thing for?"

I thought for a moment, silently counting on my fingers.

"About… twelve years?" I answered him with a slight question. "How do you say little sister in your language?"

"You are my khe'kén:'a," he answered with a smile. "And I am your tsi'a."

"Brother?" I asked him and he chuckled.

"Big brother," he corrected me as I threw a punch at his arm with a scowl.

"No fair! Everyone is always taller than I am!" I whined with a pout. I suddenly yelped as he plunked me from the tree and slung me over his shoulder before he began to cart me off.

"Put me down at once!" I ordered him, sulking when he didn't do as I asked.

"Hey!"

I looked up and saw Ryan with his sword in hand.

"Put my girlfriend down!" he snarled with all the protectiveness of a mother bear defending her cubs from danger.

"Ryan, don't!" I shouted, rolling from Connor's hold on me and landing on my feet, however Ryan was already charging us. I groaned as I spun into the path of his blade and with my gloved hand, caught his blade and forced it from his hands before pointing it at his Adam's apple.

"Whilst I am quite honored that you think of protecting me, Sir Ryan of Maxwell, I do not require a knight in shining armor, for I am quite capable of being the hero of my story," I told him in a regal voice before stabbing his sword down into the soft grass and turning to face Connor.

"I was hoping that my big brother and my boyfriend would meet in a much more civilized setting," I remarked, examining my leather glove for any nicks or scratches.

"Are you alright?" I looked up to see Connor and Ryan both engaged in a full out World War III glaring match.

"Auntie Ellie, Auntie Ellie!"

I turned at the scream and knelt down and caught little Marie as she barrowed into my chest. The little two year old angel then wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face into my shoulder.

I smiled blissfully as I turned to face the two young men before getting a stern look.

"I won't have any business of both of you at war," I warned them as Marie examined Connor.

"Sorry, Elena. I heard you scream and saw him carting you off and thought the worst," Ryan apologized sheepishly turning to Connor. "Ryan Maxwell."

"Connor," my big brother introduced himself with a firm shake and eye contact. I knew that look anywhere- daddy had scared the crap out of Ryan when we had first started to date about a year and a half ago with that same look. The if-you-make-her-cry-I-will-make-you-regret-the-day-you-were-born look.

I glanced at the sun in the sky and calculated that it was roughly fifteen minutes to opening.

"Ryan, can you please get Connor some spare clothes from the big tent?" I called out. "I need to go and get ready for the opening ceremonies!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Braving Fate**

 **I do not own Assassin's Creed.**

 **SUMMARY:**

 **Elena Kenway is a spunky, soft spoken girl with a fierce love for historical reenactments and archery. When she meets Connor, the brother she never knew she had, she discovers hidden secrets and dangers about her family tree.**

"Archers, to your mark!" roared Peter as all the archers scrambled to their places out on the battlefield. I rolled my neck a few times as the actor portraying King Arthur stepped onto the stage (which was actually just a dirt field that served as the battlefield) and delivered a Shakespearian styled speech.

I scowled deeply as I nocked an arrow, pointing in downwards so that way I didn't accidently shoot someone, as lovely as the idea was at the moment. I absolutely despised Shakespeare with a fiery passion- who even talked like that way back when?

"Archers!" bellowed Peter. "Nock… draw… loose!"

With a loud battle cry, I began to release arrow after arrow, cheering when the first line of French soldiers went down, some with arrows stuck into their armor, others dead by blade.

"Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!" I jeered, waving my two fingers in the air as the French army fell in vast numbers. I heard the audience chuckle at my insult as I fired off the last of my arrows and fell back, following the other archers as we all darted for the safety of our tents.

"Oof!" I heard someone grunt in pain. I stopped running and turned to see one of the archers had fallen and was grimacing in pain as he tried to stand back up again. I ran back and helped him up, offering my shoulders to help him limp back to camp.

"Thanks, Elena," he panted as I helped him to a bench before running off to grab the onsite first aid kit, located in our camp kitchen, behind the captain's tent.

"Not a problem," I grinned at him as I tugged his boot off. "This ankle again, Andrew?"

As I administrated first aid to his bad ankle, Ryan came up behind me with Marie tucked in the safety of his arms.

"Hey," he greeted me cheerfully as I set an ice pack onto the injured ankle. "Want to go grab some ice cream in a bit?"

"Sure," I answered with a lazy grin. "Just let me find Connor and we can go off after I'm done here, alright?"

"You go on, Elena, I'll be fine," urged Andrew, reaching over to snag the first aid kit from my hands. He shooed me away with a chuckle and I began to look around for my big brother.

" ** _CONNOR!_** " I bellowed, seeing him appear from the trees that surrounded the park. I waved him over and said, "Ryan and Marie want to get ice cream. Do you want to come along with us?"

Both Connor and Ryan flanked me as we made our way towards where the food venders were set up. Little Marie was carried by her uncle and was staring at Connor with wide eyes.

"You big," she finally commented, squeaking and burying her face into Ryan's shoulder when my big brother glanced at her. A small smile twitched at his mouth.

"Ista told me on more then one occasion that I'm built like a bear," he stated with twinkling eyes. The girl's eyes were as big as sacscers at this point, making her look cartoonish.

"Ista?" Ryan asked.

"My mom," he explained, a sad look taking over his eyes as the ice cream cart came into view. Marie squealed happily and clapped her hands with glee as we approached the woman and her cart of yummy goodness.

I chortled at Marie as I took my tankard from its strap on my belt and handed it to the ice cream stand owner. She quickly dished up our treats- chocolate for Connor and I, strawberry for Ryan, and cookies and cream for Marie. I handed over money and the four of us began to wander about, talking about everything and nothing of great importance.

That is, Connor was grilling Ryan.

I groaned as I silently ate my treat, remembering when daddy met Ryan and nearly scared the living stuffings out of my boyfriend.

"Connor, he already passed with daddy's seal of approval," I interjected after Connor asked what Ryan's plans were after college.

I noticed that my big brother's jaw clenched.

"But I'm not Haytham," he pointed out. "And he doesn't get my 'seal of approval' unless I give it to him."


End file.
